Iraq: distribution of emergency kits for displaced people

On May 31st,  Malteser International together with our partner organization Al Mustaqbal Foundation for Development (AMF) started with the first in a series of  distributions of Non-Food-Item kits to an  expected  number of more than 1,500 newly displaced families in areas of Iraq's Tal Afar district that have only recently become accessible to humanitarian assistance. The first distribution started on Wednesday May 31st, at the informal Tal Jarabia site, where over 1,000 families have temporarily found shelter only a few kilometers from the frontlines.

The area has been profoundly affected by the recent conflict between Iraqi and international forces on the one side and the so-called Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) on the other side, which has caused mass displacement. The majority of displaced people have fled to camps and emergency sites where humanitarian assistance is being provided, but also to informal shelters and neighboring communities, where assistance is harder to access.

Thanks to funding by the European Commission's Humanitarian Aid and Civil Protection department (ECHO), Malteser International and its local partner Al-Mustaqbal Foundation is coordinating with other ECHO humanitarian partners in the field to provide newly displaced persons and those in recently accessible areas with critical support. The project will provide a package covering imminent needs of non-food items for the day-to-day survival and dignity of more than 1,500 families in hard-to-reach areas of Tal Afar with a focus on inclusion of vulnerable persons and minority communities.

The Iraqi authorities anticipate that thousands more people in Tal Afar may flee in the coming weeks, as military activities continue. At the same time, conditions faced by people currently still living in ISIL held areas of are of significant concern to humanitarian partners, as access to basic relief goods continues to remain a significant challenge.

The European Union with its Member States is a leading global donor of humanitarian aid. Through the European Commission's Humanitarian Aid and Civil Protection department (ECHO), the EU helps over 120 million victims of conflict and disasters every year. With headquarters in Brussels and a global network of field offices, ECHO provides assistance to the most vulnerable people solely on the basis of humanitarian needs, without discrimination of race, ethnic group, religion, gender, age, nationality or political affiliation.